Warsaw Stock Exchange Q1 2025 slides: Revenue jumps 12% as trading volumes surge

Introduction & Market Context

The Warsaw Stock Exchange (WSE) Group reported record quarterly financial results for Q1 2025, showcasing strong performance across both its financial and commodity market segments. In a presentation delivered on May 15, 2025, the exchange revealed substantial growth in revenue and profitability, outperforming many European counterparts amid favorable market conditions.

WSE’s shares (WSE:GPW) closed at PLN 50.85 on May 14, 2025, near its 52-week high of PLN 51.60, reflecting investor confidence in the exchange’s performance. The stock has demonstrated resilience, trading well above its 52-week low of PLN 39.90.

Quarterly Performance Highlights

WSE Group achieved record quarterly revenues of PLN 132.3 million in Q1 2025, representing an 11.9% increase year-over-year. This growth was primarily driven by the Financial Market segment, which grew 14.7% YoY, while the Commodity Market segment expanded by 9.1% YoY.

The exchange reported a significant improvement in profitability, with EBITDA rising 25.7% to PLN 54.7 million and net profit increasing 27.8% to PLN 50.5 million compared to Q1 2024. The EBITDA margin expanded to 41.3% from 36.8% in the previous year, while the net margin improved to 38.2% from 33.7%.

As shown in the following comprehensive financial results table:

Operating costs increased by 5.3% YoY to PLN 87.0 million, primarily due to higher staff costs (+7.6%) and depreciation/amortization (+14.1%). However, the cost-to-income ratio improved to 65.8% from 69.9% in Q1 2024, indicating enhanced operational efficiency.

The WSE Board recommended a dividend of PLN 3.15 per share, representing 88.7% of the consolidated net profit for 2024. This translates to a total payout of PLN 132.2 million and a dividend yield of 6.62% based on current share prices.

Competitive Industry Position

The Warsaw Stock Exchange demonstrated strong competitive positioning in Q1 2025, with cash equity turnover growth of 38.4% year-over-year, outperforming several major European exchanges. Only Budapest (+58.8%), Turquoise (+58.3%), and Cboe Europe (+42.6%) recorded higher growth rates.

The exchange’s velocity ratio, which measures turnover as a percentage of market capitalization, stood at 56.6%, positioning WSE favorably against peers like Euronext (EPA:ENX) (54.9%) and Nasdaq Nordic & Baltic (43.9%), though behind Deutsche Börse (78.4%).

The following chart illustrates WSE’s competitive position among European exchanges:

Polish indices significantly outperformed global benchmarks in 2025 year-to-date, with the MSCI Poland index rising 43.1% in USD terms, while the WIG20 TR and WIG indices gained 32.0% and 31.0%, respectively. This contrasts sharply with other global indices, such as the Nikkei 225 TR, which declined by 3.4% during the same period.

The P/E ratio of the MSCI Poland index stood at 12.9, higher than the MSCI Emerging Markets (9.5) but lower than the MSCI World (20.0), suggesting Polish equities remain relatively attractively valued despite recent strong performance.

Detailed Financial Analysis

Revenue Breakdown

The WSE Group’s revenue mix showed strong performance across multiple segments. Financial Market revenue, which accounts for approximately 64% of total revenue, reached PLN 85.1 million, driven by a 34.6% increase in cash equity turnover to PLN 111.2 billion.

Commodity Market revenue grew to PLN 43.2 million, with notable contributions from electricity, gas, and property rights trading, as well as clearing services and register operations.

The following chart provides a detailed breakdown of the WSE Group’s revenue mix:

Within the Financial Market segment, trading revenue showed significant growth, particularly in the equity market. Information services, listing fees, and Alternative Market eXchange (AMX) also contributed to the overall revenue increase.

Operating Expenses and Efficiency

Despite the 5.3% increase in operating expenses to PLN 87.0 million, WSE Group improved its cost-to-income ratio by 4.1 percentage points to 65.8%. Staff costs, which represent the largest expense category, rose by 7.6% to PLN 43.6 million, while external services costs decreased slightly by 1.4%.

The following chart details the operating expenses breakdown and efficiency trends:

Capital Expenditure and Liquidity

Capital expenditures increased significantly in Q1 2025, with total CAPEX reaching PLN 24.2 million compared to PLN 15.0 million in Q1 2024. This increase was primarily driven by higher investments in intangible assets, which nearly tripled to PLN 12.9 million from PLN 4.4 million a year earlier.

The WSE Group maintained a strong liquidity position with liquid assets of PLN 455.4 million as of March 31, 2025, slightly lower than the PLN 471.9 million reported a year earlier. The company generated PLN 157.2 million in operating cash flow over the last twelve months, supporting its investment activities and dividend payments.

Forward-Looking Statements

Looking ahead to the remainder of 2025, WSE Group provided a positive outlook for its Financial Market segment, noting that equity market trading turnover in April increased by 37.6% year-over-year due to higher market volatility. The Commodity Market is expected to benefit from growing gas market turnover and seasonally higher activity in green certificates during the second quarter.

The company anticipates higher year-over-year cost growth in the coming quarters due to increased development spending and investments in new systems. Capital expenditures for 2025 are projected to be significantly higher than in 2024, reflecting the exchange’s commitment to technological advancement and market development.

WSE Group also highlighted potential opportunities arising from structural changes in the Polish and European capital markets, which could support faster long-term growth. The exchange appointed Dominika Niewiadomska-Siniecka as a Management Board member responsible for legal and regulatory affairs in April 2025, strengthening its leadership team.

Overall, the Warsaw Stock Exchange Group’s Q1 2025 results demonstrate robust performance across key financial metrics, with record revenues and profits positioning the company well for continued growth throughout 2025.

Full presentation:

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